Meredith Willson was best known as
author and composer of The Music Man, which premiered on Broadway in 1957.

Willson was born in Mason City, Iowa, and played the flute
in John Philip Sousas famous band from 1921 to 1923. He then joined the New York
Philharmonic Orchestra from 1924 to 1929.

He came to San Francisco, served as concert director for
KFRC, and rose to prominence in the early 1930s as a musical director at NBC, San
Francisco.

In the late 1930s he moved to NBC, Hollywood, and was musical director on many of the
famous radio shows of that era. He also composed for motion pictures and, in the 1940s,
was twice nominated for the Academy Award.

During World War II he served as a Major in the U.S. Army, involved in operation of
the Armed Forces Radio Service.

Many of his songs have become standards, including 76 Trombones, Its Beginning to
Look Like Christmas, You and I, May the Good Lord Bless and Keep You and Till
There Was You, a hit for the Beatles in 1963.